The NHL expansion talk has been on fire all season long. It began with posts on social media from NHL insider Kevin Weekes and now continues with a report from a contending city themselves. <h2>New City Enters NHL Expansion Discussion</h2> A new story today written by the Houston Chronicle has revealed that Houston has become a leading player in expansion discussions. According to the report, the owner of the Houston Rockets Tilman Fertitta has spoken to the NHL regarding bringing a team to Houston. <q>Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta says talks to bring the NHL to Houston have picked up of late as he sees a hockey team as a way to boost the downtown economy.</q> <div align='center'><blockquote class='twitter-tweet' data-lang='en'><a href='https://twitter.com/HoustonChron/status/1760394287395512630?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1760394287395512630%7Ctwgr%5E4a7dd4d65d350e96cc62e087b307b31cfa390228%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.markerzone.com%2Fnews%2Fmajor20talks20reportedly20heating20up20for20nhl20expansion20in20a20surprising20market'> </a></blockquote></div> With this new report, the landscape of NHL expansion has completely changed. If the NHL is planning to expand they will have an incredibly tough decision on their hands. <h2>Houston Changes Everything About The NHL Expansion Discussion</h2> With the emergence of Houston's bid for an NHL team, the discussion and favorites to land a team likely need to change. Let's take a look at the three favorites to this point with Houston in the mix. First up is Salt Lake City who have had interest pushed by the owner of the Utah Jazz. In recent weeks talks have linked them not only to expansion but potentially the relocation of the Arizona Coyotes. If the Salt Lake City group gains the Coyotes it opens up other places for expansion. Next up is Atlanta, Georgia. Atlanta has been home to two previous NHL franchises that eventually were relocated. With that being said it does remain one of the largest markets in the United States without an NHL team. If the NHL can secure a good ownership group willing to build the fanbase it could be worth the risk. Finally, the new kid on the block Houston. Houston is one of the largest and most quickly growing cities in the United States. With a strong sports culture already and teams in just about every professional North American sports league, it feels like a natural fit. The only problem would be selling hockey to a market that has not had it before. The NHL has shown its ability to do this in recent years with Vegas and could do so again. All three cities provide a compelling case for why they deserve an NHL team. Ultimately it could come down to the ownership group and which city the league feels carries the least amount of risk. <a href='https://www.markerzone.com/news/index.php?no=338996&fbclid=IwAR0VosZ0aQuy2MpR23ld1L74BNzYcxC-18hkkrgccAiFRL-8B46AJIv1dsM' class='lien_marqueur' target='_blank' rel='noopener'>As Read On - Markerzone - MAJOR: Talks Reportedly Heating Up For NHL Expansion In A Surprising Market</a>